Total pages in book: 142
Estimated words: 138526 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 693(@200wpm)___ 554(@250wpm)___ 462(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 138526 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 693(@200wpm)___ 554(@250wpm)___ 462(@300wpm)
Rose: Tired but good. Just eating pancakes and bacon covered in syrup.
Mr. C: Sounds like an excellent breakfast. How was your journey home yesterday?
Rose: If I remembered, I’d tell you. Why do you ask?
Mr. C: No reason.
Mr. C: oooooooooooooooo
Rose: Ooooooooooo???? What’s that?
Mr. C: Phone glitch. Maria is asking for you. She said she misses you.
Rose: I miss her more. How’s work?
Mr. C: Suffering without you but managing. Focus on resting, not on working.
Rose: It’s only the second day of my annual leave and I’m already bored.
Mr. C: You work too much. Enjoy the break. I know I will when I have mine.
Rose: Can I run the office? I want to tell everybody what to do.
Mr. C: I was speaking to my sister about that just this morning. I think you know my job better than anybody else, so it would make sense. We’ll talk about it when you’re back. I don’t have any plans to go anywhere just yet.
Rose: Can you come in on your day off and be my PA instead? CONTI… fetch me a bagel.
Mr. C: Absolutely. I’ll sit there tapping my fingers, murmuring numbers, rocking in my chair, and drink all the coffee in the building.
Rose: Is that what you think I do all day?
I know he’s just teasing me, but I can’t resist playing along.
Mr. C: That and sneaking off with your boyfriend for quickies in his office.
Rose: This just took a mortifying turn. I have not done that and will not do that since you threatened my job in the elevator.
Mr. C: You’d choose your job over nookie?
Rose: Depends how good the nookie is.
Mr. C: That sounded like a dig at Pax’s abilities in the bedroom.
Rose: THAT’S NOT WHAT I MEANT! This conversation is over.
Mr. C: Like your quickies in his office.
Rose: I’m never texting you again.
Mr. C: You have to. I’m your boss.
Rose: Then I quit.
Mr. C: Suuuuure you do. See you in a week… and no more silly string. I’m still finding it everywhere despite the fact you had my office cleaned three times.
Rose: I told you to let me clean it. You wouldn’t be finding any if I’d done it.
Mr. C: That’s not your job.
Rose: It was my mess.
Mr. C: It was OUR mess.
Rose: Let’s just blame it on Maria and call it a day.
Mr. C: Agreed.
I put my phone down, still beaming. I can’t wipe the smile from my face.
“Who was that?” Pax asks me for the third time. I had my mouthful, I used that as an excuse to not reply.
“Mr. Conti,” I say and jolt when he slams his knife down on the table.
“Never seen somebody so happy messaging their boss before.”
“Don’t start,” I warn, and he glares at me. “I mean it. Don’t.”
He stands, pushing his chair back so harshly it almost tips over. “I’m going for a walk.”
“You do that,” I reply, feeling a headache brewing in my skull.
He storms out of my house leaving me to clean up the breakfast plates. Not that I mind the latter part. Cleaning will take my mind off this asshole.
I also brave the light and open all the curtains. When I look out of the window I want to cry. My eyes don’t hurt, and they keep blurring in and out… but I can see everything. Absolutely everything.
I have a flowerbox beneath my window, and I can see beads of moisture on the leaves from the light shower of rain we had this morning. I can see the lines in the road, and I can read the words on the bus stop opposite the steps leading up to my neighbor’s house. I couldn’t even see those with my glasses. My eyesight was seriously bad before. I didn’t realize just how bad.
I call Laurie, fighting the urge to cry, but she doesn’t answer. She’s probably at work so I call somebody else instead.
Somebody I probably shouldn’t be calling…
“Is it weird that I’m crying because I can see everything? Well… I’m not crying but I really want to.”
“Is the world a beautiful place?” he asks, a smile in his voice.
“It’s better than I imagined. I just… I can read words from far away. My head is hurting because of all of this new information it’s trying to store.”
“Take it easy. Don’t overdo it.”
I smile, leaning out of the window to see further down the street. “I’ve been blind for so long… I feel like a new person.”
“Don’t change too much. We all like you just how you are.”
“Thanks, Mr. C.”
“Ezra,” he corrects.
“I’ll see you in a week,” I reply, smiling too.
“See you in a week.”
I disconnect the call and head for a shower. I’m going on a walk.
Pax returns while I’m washing and decides he wants to join me. His bad mood gone. We make love against the shower wall.
Chapter Nineteen
He’s always there when I need him.